Luxury Off-Roading for Cheap in a… Wait… Lexus LS 430???
Join Car Wow’s Mat Watson in a Top Gear-Esque Cheap Off-Road Challenge, featuring a 2000 Lexus LS 430.
What do a 2001 BMW 735i, 2000 Lexus LS430 and 2001 Mercedes-Benz s320 CDI all have in common? Aside from the fact they’re all luxury cars from 20+ years ago, none of them were made to be off-road vehicles. Oh, and in the UK, all three cars can be bought in decent condition for £1,000 ($1,249 USD). With that in mind, CarWow’s Mat Watson had an idea – why not take all three luxury cars and see how well they do off-road?
“What am I going to do?” says Watson from the driver’s seat of the Lexus. “Well, what I’m going to do is compare them in a selection of off-road challenges to see which is best. Why? Because if you want to go off-road in luxury, you don’t need to spend £100,000 on a new Range Rover. You can just spend £1,000 for one of these cars.”
All three cars are rear-wheel drive, making them all fairly equal competitors. The Lexus and the BMW were both powered by naturally-aspirated V8s – a 4.3L making 280 hp and 307 lb-ft of torque for the LS, and a 3.6L V8 churning up 270 hp and 265 lb-ft of torque for the Bimmer – putting the Lexus numerically ahead of the German. The Mercedes, though, came through with a 3.2L inline-six diesel engine making only 200 hp. Though, being a diesel, meant more torque than its competitors at 346 lb-ft.
Test One: Uphill Ascension
Joined by his unofficial off-road expert Graham, observing from the outside, the three cars lined up for their first test: an uphill climb on damp, sandy soil. The Mercedes lead the trio up the hill turning into a dance floor with its slipping and sliding. As it came to the BMW’s turn, a warning sound rung through the cabin letting Watson know there was something amiss with the brakes. After asking Graham if he thought it was something he should worry about, Graham replied, “It’s just part of the car, I’m sure it’s fine.”
All three cars made it up the hill, though the BMW and the Mercedes did not make their ascension with grace. Graham confirmed that the Lexus made it up with the least amount of wheelspin and dramatics. Therefore, it was dictated by both that the Lexus came first, the BMW second, and the Merc last.
Test Two: Traction and Ground Clearance
The second test involved traction and ground clearance. To best test all three cars, CarWow’s finest carved out a route in the nearby woods that featured mud pits, uneven ground, rocks, and puddles. The route was also designed with a few hairpins and other tight corners to see which of the three would hold the steadiest.
Taking off with the Mercedes in the lead, the Lexus second and BMW tailing, Watson observed the impressive articulation in the LS 430 before being shocked by the Beamer bottoming out… Again. And as the three approached the first hairpin, Watson was stunned by the Lexus’ ability to maneuver the terrain and navigate the first mud bog with ease. While his BMW made it, he made sure to note that the BMW was struggling to keep up with the LS 430.
“This [BMW] doesn’t seem to have as good a turning radius as the Lexus,” Watson says as the next obstacle appeared through the windshield. “Ah, and the Lexus made it through dead easy.”
Despite Watson’s confidence in the Lexus, Graham awarded the victory to the BMW due to Watson’s line being better than the Lexus or the Merc. While it wasn’t a victory even Watson expected, the Lexus was still in the lead points-wise.
Test Three: More Traction, Suspension and Ground Clearance
The following obstacle was crafted to further test traction and ground clearance. Watson’s test was to have all three cars climb the hill and then quickly transition to going down a steep decline to see which cars would bottom out or lose traction once atop the hill. The BMW, following the trend it set so far, bottomed out. The Mercedes didn’t bat an eye, and neither did the Lexus.
Even then, first place was given to the Merc. Graham noted that the BMW and the Lexus were the only ones to have bottomed out at the top and had noticeably less traction. Though, Watson didn’t seem too confident that the Merc deserved it.
When adding up all the points for all three cars up to the fourth round, all had 6 points. Which meant only a few more challenges left to break the tie. And while none of them were designed to do what Watson’s putting them through, he’s impressed with all three. Not one has been unable to complete an obstacle.
The next obstacle involved descending a hill that was dotted with deep, muddy puddles to show off the factory suspension setup and how well each car could handle that scenario. The LS 430 and the S320 had the option to gain a little more ride height through their adjustable air suspension setup, while the BMW did not. With Watson choosing a careful line and only scraping the bumper and the frame a few times, Graham chose the Lexus as the winner – putting it back into the lead.
But, How Do They Do on Three Wheels?
Putting the cars to their limit was their penultimate test: a side slope. Mat’s idea was to see how well either car would do when there would be one or more wheel off the ground, reducing traction. Mat, hopping into the Mercedes for this test, watched the Lexus traverse the slope first – and was thoroughly impressed with the little amount of work needed to get the car through.
All three made it through the side slope test with ease, though the BMW called it quits shortly after. While the BMW struggled to start at first, they were finally able to start it after dealing with a fuel issue being on its side. A towing and disqualification was narrowly avoided.
Two Germans, One Mud Bog
The final stage was a deeply rutted, and very steep decline that Watson coined, “The Abyss.” All three cars made the ascension with all three drivers at the edge of their seat, though at the bottom was a muddy and narrow bog. The Lexus pushed through without hassle, while the BMW ended up stuck. Watson in the Mercedes decides to help his fellow German out of the bog, though it took a few aggressive bumps to push through.
As the BMW slid and drifted through, the Mercedes ended up the beached one followed by a symphony of alarms and alerts. Defeated, Watson was towed through the bog by a crew member’s Land Rover. Once on dry land, the Merc had a suspension light pop up saying it was too low, only for the engine to die immediately after. For the Mercedes, who ended up in second place overall, was given a DNF for the final obstacle.
And the Winner Is…
The Lexus, unsurprisingly, won the Cheap Off-Road Battle with 14 points total, the Merc with 11 and the BMW with 10. No warning or engine lights were reported for the Lexus either, while the two Germans had a laundry list of them after their beating.
What does this mean, exactly? Well, like Mat Watson said, why spend £100,000 on a Land Rover when you can buy a 2000 Lexus LS 430 for £1,000, beat the tar out of it off-road, and still be home in time for dinner? While the Land Rover is purpose-built and priced according to the off-road features, it’s tough to say that it’s a better financial decision after seeing how well an old Lexus does driving through tough terrain.
Watch the whole video here:
